So That Explains It
by Cat Professor
Summary: Ever wondered what made Reaver such a scandalous and evil man?  Who would have guessed that it was Hedwig!  M for themes and later violence.


First story!

I don't own anything but the crazy ideas in my head.

The first time he walked through the large metal doors he was eighteen years old. He had heard stories of the wonders of the Darkwood Bordello among the boys at school, but Madame Minzche did not allow boys into the world of men. But unlike the other "men" who typically sprinted through Darkwood Marches and snuck through Darkwood Lake for an evening at the Bordello, Reaver was the only one who had actually defeated the hobbes, bandits, nymphs, and balverines that attempted to kill him. But nothing would stop him reaching the Bordello and receiving his reward.

What Reaver lacked in experience with women, he more than made up for with his talent with a bow. When he was young his father gave him a fishing pole and he soon caught a fish even larger than the great Hero had caught in the Albion Anglers' Association Competition that same year. If he cast his fishing rod, he was guaranteed to catch something. Even, mysteriously, in areas where fish were not even thought to be living. But catching fish soon became boring and Reaver wished for a new challenge. When he turned thirteen he received his first yew bow for his birthday and took to hunting around Greatwood as a food source for his family. But once again he became bored with the ease in which he killed small prey. Something ran in his blood that made it impossible to be content until he had proven himself.

One night a group of bandits stormed the farm house on Orchard Farms, the place his family had bought after the death of the old farmer and his wife. The bandits ruthlessly burned their apple orchard before turning their attention to the house. But little did they know, the Hero of Skill was to be born that night. When Reaver saw the flames of the orchard and knew that bandits were threatening to destroy all he loved, the magic within him came alive. He grabbed his bow and notched it with an arrow. Much to his surprise the bow lit up with a powerful yellow aura and dozens of balls of light were suddenly circling around him. Reaver swiftly opened the door, pulled back the bow string, and released the arrow at the closest approaching bandit. But instead of shooting just the one arrow from his bow, the balls of light elongated and sped away into the night after it. Not understanding what had happened and still expecting to fight to the death, Reaver quickly notched another arrow and focused his eyes on his next target. But what he saw before him was a complete massacre. Each bandit had been shot through the heart with an arrow of light and had died an fast, though extremely painful, death. The only bandit left alive was the one who had been pierced by the wooden arrow passing completely through his body. Reaver slowly walked over and knelt alone beside the dying man, his parents too scared to leave the house.

"You got what you deserved," he whispered into the man's ear.

With fear filled eyes and a blood filled mouth the bandit spat and gurgled his last words. Reaver stood over the corpse with a sad smirk on his face. He was no monster like that dead body had claimed only seconds before. When he had needed it most his power had fully awoken. There was only one man alive who could kill with such accuracy and speed, and he was the great Hero son of the legendary Scarlet Robe. As Reaver turned to walk back to his mother and father, he finally understood that he too was a Hero. The feeling of happy pride mixed with sorrowful regret at the loss of innocence after slaughtering an entire bandit raid with one arrow made him certain that he would do great things and that this good deed would not be his last.

The night the bandits attacked had started Reaver down the path to becoming the Hero that he was born to be, and he hoped that the Darkwood Bordello would make him into the man he hoped to be. For aside from wanting to fulfill his carnal desires, he wanted to steal away with the woman of his dreams. He had heard stories of Amelia, the partially educated country girl who had come to the Bordello in desperation. He had been working in the Bowerstone Pub for two years to save enough money to buy her a nice marital house in Bowerstone South and raise their future children right next to the school house. He would work for the guards and provide for his family. It was all planned out perfectly. He had heard of her delicate beauty, intelligence, and feminine kindness. She was perfect for him and he wanted to end her suffering, after ending his own of course.

So he stepped into the Bordello courtyard and breathed in the scent of a place so drastically different than the world of Darkwood Lake just beyond the large metal doors. He had a purpose. Once he had proven himself to Amelia they would begin their blissful life together making Bowerstone a better, safer place. But Reaver's plans would change the moment he saw Hedwig.

More when I get time!

Please review!


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